These days I live in the Twin Cities, which has a population of 3.2 million when you include suburbs. I know that rush hour starts at 3:00 pm, I know which neighborhoods to avoid at night, and I know which bars serve delicious $12 cocktails.

And though I love me a San Joaquin South Side as much as the next person, I’ll probably always be a country girl at heart. Few things make me happier than a sunny corner booth in a cheap diner or jumping off a rickety dock into a lake. I know a lot of people think small towns and rural America are boring and/or full of rednecks, but I disagree.

4 Reasons You Need a Country Vacation

You will immediately feel one million times calmer

You will see the stars at night and hear the birds in the morning. You won’t sit in traffic. You can wear those Adidas sandals from 1999 and no one will judge you. The air will smell like lake/grass/skunk and you will love it.

There might not be wifi and for this you will thank the stars above (the ones that you can see because there’s no light pollution.)

Everything costs one dollar

Okay, not one dollar but in my hometown you can order a round of drinks and a bag of peanuts for $9. At the golf course, the most expensive steak dinner on the menu is $15. Motel rooms are $45.

The people are insanely nice

Want to chat with your waitress for 15 minutes about the weather? It’s happening. Want to know where there’s a good swimming beach? The guy at the gas station will probably tell you five fantastic swimming beaches. Strangers will help you when they see you struggling with, well, anything.

You’re supporting an economy that needs it

Many rural communities are struggling financially. There are very few high paying jobs in small towns, so many young people move to the city and the little towns are slowly drained of their most promising citizens. When you visit small towns and shop at small, independent businesses, you’re supporting the entire community.

26 Comments

Totally agree with you on this one! I'm from a very small town, and while I hated it growing up, now I definitely appreciate renting a cabin somewhere and just chilling out.Also, SO COOL that you & Cheryl Strayed interned at the same paper! I saw her read a couple of weeks ago and she was fantastic 🙂

All of the above. This is why I love spending time in northern Wisconsin and in West Virginia so much. It's funny that we have the option to turn off our phones/computers/TVs at home, but when the option to use them is actually taken away (no data or wifi?!) it is hugely refreshing.

I grew up in a small town — about the size of the one you describe — and this bookish city-girl hated every minute of it. Most of our vacations are added to the beginning or end of work trips, so they most often happen in large-ish cities. Every couple of years, though, we make it to someplace small and quiet. By far my favorite was the cabin we rented just outside of Red Lodge, Montana: creatures! no wi-fi! goofing around with the camera to take pictures of stars! hiking! kayaking in a comically small pond!

I am from a town of about 3k. BUT within the last few years, grammy-winning country singer/songwriter Miranda Lambert, and her husband Blake Shelton, moved to our town. They love it here. Because, frankly, no one gives a shit how famous/rich you are: we are just real people who believe in manners. She opened a store downtown & it brings in a lot of new visitors. It's been great for our little community. I live in College Station, TX now but go home as often as I can. I miss the stars!

I totally agree, you will feel so much better! I am from the midwest (although a 250,000 people town, it still feels smaller to me because everyone seems to know everyone-somehow) where the small towns are just mere 10 minutes away from where I live. You will NEVER find better produce for better prices at the little road stands, the local festivals are cute and totally cheap, and the people are so nice. Where I'm living now (outside Vancouver) it's so different. I recently went camping and just about had the wind knocked out of me when we took the primitive sites for $21/night! Holy crap, and for nothing but a pit bathroom, no showers. I am used to the $5-7 range for that. I am realizing after about a year living here that I will need to eventually buy in an area where there is mostly farmland, less apartment buildings and just deal with being farther away from everything. The difference on my sanity is immense. Sarah M

I love this. My grandparents have a lakehouse in Jamestown, PA – in the absolute middle of nowhere. It's like going back in time when we visit: no wifi, no cell service…no problems. Just make a s'more, have a beer & take a kayak out onto the lake. Heaven.

I think I grew up with the best of both worlds. I lived outside of a medium-sized city (~25-30K), not quite in the country, but close. A few fields and farm animals nearby, but mostly single family homes on large lots. Stars every night and exploring the undeveloped woods and creek behind our house every summer. Catching dozens of toads, climbing trees, running around barefoot. Some relatives lived even further out. In one direction, an aunt had a pool surrounded by horse pastures and tobacco fields. In the other, an uncle had a camper set up in a permanent campground on Kentucky Lake where we'd swim and ski (well, I only tried once but have the scar to prove it) and fish from the pontoon boat in our family's secret catfish hole.

These days, I live in a different medium-sized city (33K), not downtown, but very close to town. This city is close to a large city (200K) to which I commute daily. It's definitely different from how I grew up. I will say that I'd love to move just a little bit further out and get back the woods and starry skies…

No way! My grandma lives near McGregor! We always spent Christmas there growing up–skating on a pond, cross country skiing under the moonlight, winter bonfires. Sigh. That's the magical stuff that you can't quite recreate in the cities.

Just drove across the country and back. I realized that the little country places were nice but they drove me a bit crazy. I grew up in pretty-much-rural PA and moved to NYC when I was 17. I always thought I had a longing to go back to the countryside, but nope, I'm a city girl now through and through.

Perhaps, skipping the city streets is one of the most paid-off experience I always want. Even for a day or two, many would actually treasure the scent of grassy fields and the welcoming embrace of the sun. They serve fresh food, newly cooked and delicacies that they are very proud of! Vacation rules. Seriously.

Seeing the stars out in the country with fresh air is one of the most magical things. I often go down to Kanab, UT for the 4th of July, and it is the best! This year we saw the annual parade, where all the locals (including my grandparents) have their "spot"–and they all know each other. We stopped by lunch in Glendale where there was a crockpot soup contest (yes, I know, on the 4th of July). There's no wi-fi, so you go shooting or sit around and talk, check out the rock shops (there are like 5), and then go for the town dinner (like, the town serves you dinner) and watch fireworks off the red rocks at night.

My mom and dad grew up in Aitkin. Rasley Oil? My maternal grandparents started and ran that business for many years. My dad's father was the town doctor. We used to vacation there every summer in the 1980's and 1990's. My favorite thing to do was to swim and catch sun fish at my grandparents' cabin on Farm Island lake. I also love going to the county fair and Riverboat days. And now this world is a little smaller. 🙂

I don't live in a small town, but I do enjoy visiting small towns on vacation. The slower pace and the people who tend to be friendly and knowledgeable about their community are my favorite parts of small town visiting.

I absolutely love this! I grew up in a small town in ND (very close to the MN border, in fact) and I think you describe things perfectly. I still live in a pretty small town, but I try to make it out to the country every weekend to relax. I throw on some cowboy boots and a straw hat and just chill out. It's wonderful and nothing can compare to it. I especially love that you mention the night sky. Great post.

I will be happily sharing this article – my dad's family is in rural (even smaller than your hometown, if you can believe it) Arkansas, and when I went to visit this summer it was the most relaxing trip I had taken in a LONG time. Rock.

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